David Ferrer wore down the will and the game of fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco on Saturday, winning 7-5, 6-3 to claim a career-first finals spot at the Rome Masters.
The title match could become another all-Iberian affair should third seed and four-time champion Rafael Nadal knock off Latvian spoiler Ernests Gulbis, who will be dreaming of adding Nadal to this week’s victim’s list which also includes Roger Federer.
This weekend marks the first time in the post-1968 Open era that three Spaniards have reached the Rome semifinals.
It was the third meeting in as many weeks for the two national rivals — a fortnight ago, Verdasco prevailed against Ferrer, winning a Monte Carlo semifinal and followed up with victory last week in the Barcelona third round.
